Goodyear Fast Facts — Atlanta

GOODYEAR TIRE NOTES

NASCAR Cup Series — Race No. 5 – 325 laps / 500.5 miles

Atlanta Motor Speedway (1.54-mile oval) – Hampton, Ga.

Fast Facts for March 18-20, 2022

Tire: Goodyear Eagle 18-inch Speedway Radials

Set limits:
Cup: 3 sets for practice, 1 set for qualifying and 13 sets for the race
(12 race sets plus 1 set transferred from qualifying)

Tire Codes:
Left-side — D-5146; Right-side — D-5158

Tire Circumference:
Left-side — 2,254 mm (88.74 in.); Right-side — 2,279 mm (89.72 in.)

Minimum Recommended Inflation:
Left Front — 20 psi; Left Rear — 22 psi;
Right Front — 52 psi; Right Rear — 50 psi

Storyline – Move over Daytona and Talladega; Atlanta gains superspeedway status: With the complete repave and reconfiguration of Atlanta Motor Speedway, the 1.54-mile track has now jumped into the superspeedway group.  As such, NASCAR Cup teams will race under the same rules package they do at Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway – 510 horsepower and a seven-inch-tall spoiler (as compared to 670 hp and a four-inch blade).

With any repave,  the new asphalt of the track surface will have a high level of grip.  Grip leads to speed, and speed leads to heat.  Managing those temperature levels in the tires will be an important factor.  Goodyear engineered the Atlanta tire set-up in anticipation of very little tire wear on the new surface and having less gage (thickness) in the tread in order to dissipate some of that heat.

“Atlanta has always been a major challenge from a tire standpoint, but the reason for that challenge has changed dramatically since our last race there,” said Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s director of racing.  “Last season, Atlanta was the most worn surface on the circuit, aggressively wearing tires and calling for four-tire stops at every opportunity.  Now that the track has been repaved in the off-season, the challenge has shifted to that of a smooth surface that will not naturally wear tires much at all.  Tire wear is a positive in racing because as the tire wears, it sheds rubber. This helps to dissipate the heat generated from the high level of grip and speed, keeping the tire at a more optimal performance level.  The tread compounds for Atlanta have been formulated to operate in these low-wear conditions.  Additionally, the track configuration has been changed, going from 24 to 28 degrees of banking in the corners.  That has contributed to Atlanta now being put in the same category of tracks as Daytona and Talladega, and away from the other mile-and-a-half tracks.”

Notes – Cup teams to run unique tire set-up at Atlanta: Having moved to an 18-inch bead diameter tire for 2022, NASCAR Cup teams will run a different tire set-up than those in the Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series at Atlanta this week . . . in addition to the obvious construction changes vs. what Cup teams ran at this track last season, this tire set-up features compound changes on both sides of the car to accommodate for the new track surface . . . this is the first time Cup teams have run either of these two tire codes in competition, and this is the only track at which these teams are scheduled to run either of these two codes . . . Goodyear held a tire test at Atlanta on January 5-6 . . . teams (drivers) participating in that test were 23XI Racing (Kurt Busch), RFK Racing (Chris Buescher) and Trackhouse Racing (Ross Chastain) . . . with this 18-inch tire, and its lower profile sidewall, NASCAR Cup cars will not run inner liners in any of their tires in 2022.

GOODYEAR TIRE NOTES

NASCAR Xfinity Series — Race No. 3 – 163 laps / 251 miles

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series — Race No. 5 – 135 laps / 208 miles

Atlanta Motor Speedway (1.54-mile oval) – Hampton, Ga.

Fast Facts for March 18-19, 2022

Tire: Goodyear Eagle 15-inch Speedway Radials

Set limits:
Xfinity: 6 sets for the event;
Camping World Truck – 6 sets for the event

Tire Codes:
Left-side — D-6124; Right-side — D-6126

Tire Circumference:
Left-side — 2,225 mm (87.60 in.); Right-side — 2,250 mm (88.58 in.)

Minimum Recommended Inflation:
Left Front — 19 psi; Left Rear — 19 psi;
Right Front — 52 psi; Right Rear — 48 psi

Notes – New tires for new track at Atlanta: Teams in both the NASCAR Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series will run the same tire set-up at Atlanta this weekend . . . being on 15-inch bead diameter tires, these teams will run a different tire set-up than those in the Cup Series . . . these are two new tire codes, with Xfinity and Truck teams moving from a multi-zone tread tire to a single tread compound tire at Atlanta this season . . . Goodyear held a tire test for these two series on the new surface at Atlanta on January 4 . . . Xfinity drivers participating in that test were Justin Allgaier, Ty Gibbs and Riley Herbst, while Truck drivers were Grant Enfinger, Tanner Gray and John Hunter Nemechek . . . as on all NASCAR ovals greater than one mile in length, teams are required to run liners in all four tire positions at Atlanta . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.

— Goodyear Racing —